


Calm Meets Storm

by Solemnly_Swear



Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-07
Updated: 2017-08-07
Packaged: 2018-12-12 10:15:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11734971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Solemnly_Swear/pseuds/Solemnly_Swear
Summary: A young Shu'halo meets an unlikely friend.





	Calm Meets Storm

**Calm Meets Storm**

Etaiam sat still as a statue on the edge of the cliff overlooking a great expanse of sea. She moved not one muscle; she barely dared to breathe. Her pale eyes were enchanted by a figure in the distance as she watched it soar, swoop, and spiral through the early morning skies. The young Shu’halo was so fixated on the figure that she’d lost all sense of time. Restless as ever, Etaiam had crept away from the edges of the camp just as the sun rose into the sky. It was now mid-morning. She’d missed her morning meal, but her growling stomach barely registered in her mind.

Suddenly he made a sharp turn and flew straight at her. She abruptly stood to her hooves and tried to scramble off the rock she perched on, searching for the nearest bush to hide in. As she attempted to run backwards, her hoof slipped and half a breath later she found herself sprawled on the stony ground. She bit her tongue to avoid screaming or crying as she pushed herself up into as sitting position and began to examine her wounds. A scuff on her arm, a scrape on her knee, and a cut on her pastern. The latter might need a bit of attention, but she was in no immediate danger.

As she contemplated her condition, a shadow swept across her. The figure beside her had landed so gracefully she’d not have noticed him if it weren’t for the shadow. “Hello, child,” came a soft, even lazy, voice. Etaiam looked up at him with gray eyes drawn wide.

“I’m not a child,” she huffed, annoyance outweighing her intrigue.

He chuckled as slowly as he spoke and then nodded. “Yeah? Not a child, you say, but you’re not a…” he paused, unsure whether the brawny youth before him was a bull or a cow. “Well, I daresay you’re not fully grown either.”

Etaiam shrugged. “No. But that doesn’t make me a child.”

“What would you prefer to be called?”

“Etaiam,” she answered simply.

The bull looked over her carefully and nodded again. “Etaiam it is. Now, I saw you take a bit of a tumble. Are you hurt?”

Etaiam shook her head and held out her arm toward him. “No, not badly. See? Just a couple of scrapes. I’ve had much worse.”

“It wouldn’t hurt you to put some salve on that later, but you’re right. I think you’ll survive for now.” The bull continued to speak in a languid manner, as if he were quite old and tired.

Etaiam tilted her head at him, ears pricked forward, as he spoke. He didn’t look old or tired, yet he was so still he all but melded into their surroundings. “How do you do that?” she finally asked.

“Do what, darlin’?”

She pointed at him. “That. Stand there so…so quiet. It’s like I could look right at you but not even notice you if I didn’t know you were there.”

“Much practice, my dear.” He gazed at Etaiam, lips curling into a smile. “See? You have a very loud energy about you. It’s easy to tell it pains you to sit still.”

Etaiam nodded. “I do hate sitting still!”

“Well, I’m much the opposite. Never in a rush. Patient. Quiet.” He met her Etaiam’s eyes to be sure she was listening and gave a nod. “Skills you’d do well to learn, I reckon.” He flashed her a reassuring smile, as if to tell her he wasn’t chastising her. “Everyone needs to be patient and quiet sometimes.”

The little cow frowned for a moment but then brightened, nodding. “You’re right. Sometimes it is good to be fast and loud but sometimes you need to be quiet. I have to be quiet when I’m hunting!” She realized her voice had escalated again and quietly shushed herself. “Oops. What I mean is I do know how to be quiet sometimes. I was quiet while watching you earlier.”

The bull chuckled at her and reached out to tousle her mane. “Right you are. I noticed you some time ago. You were still then, but not invisible to the eye. Even in your stillness you still radiated excitement.” He gave her a wink before tipping his head respectfully. “By the way, I’m Rodra. I’ve seen you around camp but I’m afraid we haven’t been formally introduced yet.”

Etaiam grinned. “Nice to meet you, Rodra! I haven’t seen you before today but when I noticed you over here on the rocks puffing at your pipe I just had to come over and watch. You had a faraway look in your eyes, like you were thinking about some great adventure. I’ve been quite lonely and in search of something exciting to do.”

“Adventure? Nah, child - Etaiam, I mean - I was just enjoying a quiet moment of meditation. Not everyone wakes up as bouncing with energy as you do. Me, I prefer to start things slow and intentional.” Rodra realized he was talking more than he had in months, perhaps years. What was it about this youngster that brought out his chatty side? Without thinking, he reached out and ruffled her mane again before laying a hand on her shoulder. “So what is it you’re doing all the way out here, other than spying on me?”

“I’m not spying! I swear it!” Once again, Etaiam realized she was yelling and dropped her voice. “I was just curious…and I wanted a walk. Walking or running is what I like to do in the morning. And any time of day, actually. I guess you’re right! I do have a lot of energy.” She glanced up at Rodra and he gave her a gentle smile and a grunt of a agreement. Etaiam continued speaking, happy to fill in the silence if he had nothing to add. “Watching you gave me an idea! So, you see, I had a pet cat before I came here. I found her injured in the plains near my tribe’s home in Mulgore and I nursed her back to health and she just sort of stuck around. But when I came here she got lost, somehow, and didn’t make it with me.” Etaiam frowned as she spoke of the tragedy.

“My, that sounds terrible,” Rodra spoke, clasping his hand tighter around Etaiam’s shoulder. “I’m very sorry to hear about that. If I could do anything to help-”

“You can!” Etaiam grinned. “You fly, right? So all you’d need to do is fly me back to Orgrimmar, which is where I left her. With you helping me look I bet we could find-”

“Hold on just a moment, my little cougar. You must look before you leap. I’d be happy to assist you, but there’s a problem. I can’t fly you to Orgrimmar.”

“Why not?”

Rodra laughed. “Honey, do you know where you are?”

“Yes. Howling Fjord.”

“And do you know where that is?”

“Um…here?”

Rodra shook his head and grunted. “Okay. Look. Orgrimmar is a very long way away. You see that sea out there?” He gestured toward what he’d been flying over a few minutes before. “We’d have to cross that sea farther than the horizon to get to Orgrimmar. I’m afraid I just can’t fly that far.” As Etaiam frowned, Rodra grinned. “But!” His voice raised to a level it hadn’t reached before and he spoke with a lively tone. “There is a way! We could fly to the zeppelins and take them. From here to Undercity and from there to Orgrimmar. It would be a long journey, but not too difficult.”

“REALLY?!” Etaiam jumped up and hugged Rodra around his middle. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

Rodra fought the urge to pry Etaiam’s squeezing hands off of him and instead patted her softly on the back. “There, there. No need to thank me yet. It is just an idea. I will need to see if I can tear away from camp for some time to take you. It won’t be today.”

“Tomorrow, then?”

With a furrowed brow, Rodra shrugged. “Hmm… Well… Maybe.” The squeezing around his middle intensified. “Oof. You’re quite strong, I see.”

“I am! So we can go tomorrow?” Etaiam was not going to let the conversation derail.

“I’ll have to check around and make sure I won’t be missed. How about…we plan on meeting here at dawn again. If we can go, we will. If not, maybe I can at least fly you around over the sea for a bit.”

“Ooookay,” Etaiam spoke in slight disappointment, releasing her grasp on her new friend. “But please, please, please try to get away so we can go? It’s really important to me.”

“I know, Etaiam.” Rodra patted her shoulder again. “I know. And I will do my best to help you. If it’s not tomorrow, I promise we will still find a way to go look for your cat. But now I must head back to camp. Will you be alright here or would you like to walk back with me?”

Etaiam weighed her options, shifting from one hoof to the other as she thought. “Well I like it here. But it would be lonely with you gone. And I do need to tend to the cut on my pastern. So…let’s walk back!” She placed her fingers into his large palm and tugged him forward. “C’mon!” The poor bull had no hope but to follow, meanwhile beginning to plan out their cat-finding adventure.


End file.
